Navigation & Instruments
Navigation & Instruments covers how you find your way and keep the jet under control when you can’t just “look outside.” From units and altimetry to ILS categories, GPS/INS, radio navigation aids, HUDs and MFDs, this section explains the tools and concepts behind real and DCS instrument flying.
Subcategories
Altimetry & Vertical References 2
Altimetry & Vertical References explains how altitude is actually measured and reported. This section covers AGL vs MSL, barometric settings (QNH/QFE), transition altitude/level concepts and how altimeters work, so you know what those numbers really mean in briefs, cockpit instruments and DCS missions.
Aviation Units & Measurements 8
Aviation Units & Measurements explains the basic “language of numbers” used in flying: feet vs meters, knots vs km/h, nautical miles, Mach, angles in degrees, QNH/QFE and typical altitudes. This section helps you stop guessing what those values mean so you can read charts, briefs and cockpit data in DCS without constantly converting in your head.
Angles & Bearings 2
Angles & Bearings explains the directional language pilots use to navigate and fight. This section covers headings, courses, bearings, radials and relative bearings, plus common call formats like “bearing to station,” “bearing to target,” and clock-position references. The goal is to make numbers like 045, 270, or “bandit 2 o’clock” instantly meaningful in DCS, instead of just noise on the radio.
Cockpit Displays & Avionics 4
Cockpit Displays & Avionics explains the “glass” and brains of your jet. This section covers HUDs, MFDs, basic avionics pages, sensor displays and how flight, nav and weapons data are presented to you, so you can read the symbology in DCS with intent instead of just reacting to random numbers and icons.
Instrument Approaches and Minima 9
Instrument Approaches and Minima explains how you get safely from the clouds to the runway using instruments instead of eyesight. This section covers ILS categories (CAT I/II/III), DH/DA, MDA, RVR and the concept of “minimums,” and then shows how those ideas map into DCS where the rules aren’t enforced but the techniques still matter for serious IFR-style flying.
Navigation Systems 7
Navigation Systems explains the tools that tell your jet where it is and where it’s going. This section covers GPS, INS, GPS/INS hybrids, TACAN, waypoints and markpoints, plus how these systems drift, update and interact. The goal is to make your navigation in DCS deliberate and repeatable instead of just “follow the line on the HSI.”
Radio Navigation Aids 6
Radio Navigation Aids explains the classic beacons your instruments listen to. This section covers NDB/ADF, VOR/DME-style navigation and TACAN, how bearings and radials work, and how these concepts are simplified in DCS where TACAN does most of the heavy lifting. The goal is to make tuning a nav radio something you understand, not just “spin the knob until the HSI moves.”